Letter: Contract zone a raw deal for Cumberland residents

Opinion

Letter: Contract zone a raw deal for Cumberland residents

Monday, July 28, 2014 at 9:50 am

Recently a questionable deal was struck between a real estate broker, a developer and the town of Cumberland. This deal allows town planners to ignore established zoning regulations for questionable “community benefit,” while spending Cumberland tax money without input from residents.

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The deal between the developer and town will allow multi-unit homes to be built on sub-acreage lots. In exchange, the town will receive land to build a road connecting Route 9 to Harris Road, turning a quiet, safe, community into an expensive and dangerous thoroughfare.

The town is trading the contract zone for land to solve a problem that does not exist. They claim it is needed for emergency vehicle access and egress during flooding. An access road already exists and is available for these purposes through an agreement with landowners.

The three thoroughfares between Falmouth and Cumberland are more than sufficient: Route 1, Route 9 and Middle Road. One more is an extravagant misuse of taxpayer money. The estimates to build this new road are between $80,000 and $90,000. This does not include safety improvements to Harris Road. This significant money would be better used to support our teachers and schools.

As residents, we find this deal to be frustrating, one-sided and extremely strong-armed. If you feel residents should have a say in the use of contract zoning, what defines “community benefit,” and how our tax dollars are spent, please consider signing the petitions that will be circulating before Aug. 13.